BAMILEKE STOOL 40

Most Bamileke art (and the work of other kingdoms of the Cameroon Grasslands)
relates to kings and important chiefs, who defined their power by the display
of prestige objects during important ceremonies. Stools were among the most
important of these objects. The motifs include leopards, human figures and
heads, spiders, lizards and other subjects plus abstract designs. The spider,
often found abstracted in repeating patterns,is a symbol of wisdom. The
leopard; cunning, fast, mobile and guardedly aggressive, signifies the ability
to survive and is the most important royal icon, often even the king's alter
ego. Glass beads embellish the most important royal stools.